Vehicle safety and crime deterrent communication system

ABSTRACT

For use in a vehicle having radio equipment including at least a microphone and a transmitter, apparatus including a second microphone and an adapter for connecting both of said microphones to the transmitter. Switching means are arranged for selectively operating the second microphone, with the switching means and second microphone being disposed for operation without compromising vehicle control and for operation during a distress situation such as a hold-up or the like. Circuitry is provided for enhancing operation of the apparatus by providing timing, amplification, noise suppression and impedance matching functions.

United States Patent 1191 Guadara et a1.

[ Sept. 16, 1975 4] VEHICLE SAFETY AND CRIME 2,794,857 6/1957 Doriot179/1 SW DETERRENT CORMHTNICATION SYSTEM 3,371,278 2/1968 Gelushia eta1. 325/16 X 3,419,865 12/1968 Chisholm.... 325/117 Inventors J pGuadara; W am 3,550,001 12/1970 Hanley 325/117 Wesserling, both of NorthBergen, 3,611,140 /1971 Shimada 325/ 15 NJ. 3,703,714 11/1972 Andrews340/224 [73] Assignee: Sav-A-Life Co ration Union Cit NJ. rpo y PrimaryExaminer-Donald J. Yusko Attorney, Agent, or FirmAnthony F. Cuoco [22]Filed: June 26, 1974 [21] App]. No.: 483,459 [57] ABSTRACT i ApplicationData For use in a vehicle having radio equipment including [63]Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 290,264, Sept. 18, at least a microphoneand a transmitter, apparatus i 1972 abandonad' eluding a secondmicrophone and an adapter for connecting both of said microphones to thetransmitter. U.S. 17; Switching means are arranged for Selectivelyoperating 2 340/52 R the second microphone, with the switching means and[51] Int. Cl. H04B 01/44; 6088 /00 Second microphone b ing disposed foroperation with- [58] FIG! 0 Search 340/224, 277, 52 R; out o p g vehiclecontrol and for operation 325/111 16; 1 during a distress situation suchas a hold-up or the 179/1 1 PC like. Circuitry is provided for enhancingoperation of the apparatus by providing timing, amplification, noise156] References C'ted suppression and impedance matching functions.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,993,497 3/1935 Wells 340/52 R 9 D'awmg figuresTo BATTERY 4| T MANUAIEOLQJDSLMITTER 1 58 62- TO RADIO APPARATUS 2PATENTED SEF I 6 I975 SHEET 1 OF 3 RADIO APPARATUS FIG.|

REMOTE STATION 4 S w 0 V mm AM O B L I [III we 6 Q3 a 2 T 2 m 2 M. PW 2v l I IlL will: fi J O P v E/ w M E 1 n n B FIIIIIL \lm w 1% -ADAPTERFIG. 2

PATENTED SEP 1 51915 VEHICLE SAFETY AND CRIB IE DETERRENT COMMUNICATIONSYSTEM CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is acontinuation-in-part of US. Application Ser. No. 290,264 filed Sept. 18,1972 and now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This inventionrelates to vehicle safety and crime deterrent communication systems and,particularly, to communications systems of the type described usingradio equipment. More particularly, this invention relates to vehicleradio communications systems which may be operated without compromisingvehicle control and which may be operated surreptitiously in a distresssituation.

2. Description of the Prior Art Taxicabs, trucks and emergency vehiclescarry radio equipment for communications purposes. In order for thedriver of the vehicle to communicate with a remote station he must graspa microphone in his hand and operate a transmitting switch. In heavytraffic or during hazardous driving conditions, or during high speedturnpike driving such as may be the case for trucks, this would wellcompromise vehicle control and hence safety.

Additionally, vehicles such as cargo trucks and taxicabs areparticularly prone to highjacking or hold-up attempts. By arranging theapparatus of the invention for surreptitious operation the chances forfrustrating these attempts are enhanced.

While prior art devices such as described in US. Pat. No. 1,993,497issued in 1935 to Wells and US. Pat. No. 3,461,423 issued in 1969 toTrumble are directed to distress situations such as those described,they require complicated equipment and elaborate installation thereof.The system of the invention utilizes existing radio equipment modifiedto an insignificant extent to accomplish its purpose.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention contemplates a vehiclecommunication system including radio equipment having at least atransmitter, and first and second microphones and an adapter forconnecting the microphones to the transmitter. The first microphone isoperated in a conventional manner for overt transmission while thesecond microphone is arranged for transmission without compromisingvehicle control and for surreptitious or covert transmission so as notto attract the attention of an intruder. Circuitry is provided forapplying time control and amplification functions to the system when thesecond microphone is used, as well as for surppressing undesirable noiseand matching the microphone impedance to the impedanceof the radioequipment being used.

One object of this invention is to provide a vehicle communicationsystem having dual modes of communications, i.e., overt communicationand surreptitious communication.

Another object of this invention is to provide a vehicle communicationsystem which is operable without compromising vehicle control and whichis surreptitiously operable so as not to attract the attention of aperpetrator of the crime against the vehicle.

Another object of this invention is to provide a system of the typedescribed which uses existing radio equipment in the vehicle.

Another object of this invention is to provide a system of the typedescribed which is simple in construction and easy to install ascompared to prior art devices for the purposes intended.

Another object of this invention'is to include in a system of the typedescribed circuitry for providing timing, amplification, noisesuppression and impedance matching characteristics.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention willappear more fully hereinafter from a consideration of the detaileddescription which follows, taken together with the accompanying drawingswherein a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way ofexample. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawingsare for illustration purposes only and are not to be construed asdefining the limits of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the figures, wherein correspondingnumerals indicate corresponding parts:

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation showing the components of theinvention and their relation to each other.

FIG. 2 is an electrical schematic diagram of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a partially pictorial-partially schematic representationshowing an implementation of the invention.

FIG. 4 is an electrical schematic diagram showing circuitry according tothe invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION With reference first to FIG. 1, theinvention features radio apparatus 2 which includes at least atransmitter, but in the preferred embodiment of invention is aconventional two-way radio such as carried by taxicabs, trucks andemergency vehicles and the like for communication between the aforenotedvehicles and a remote station 4 (FIG. 2). A microphone 6 is connected toradio apparatus 2 through an adapter 8 and is operable through anormally open switch 6A mounted on the microphone. A microphone 10 isconnected to radio apparatus 2 through a adapter 8 and is operablethrough a control box 12 having normally open switches 12A and 12B.

Microphone is of a commercially available type which is held in the handwhen used as is well known in the art. A microphone suitable for thepurpose intended is described in the Allied Electronics Catalog 720,1972, and carries the trade designation, Model 600E. Microphone 10 whichis also commercially available may be, for reasons which willhereinafter become evident, of the miniature, mountable type such asdescribed idn the aforenoted catalog and carries the trade designation,Model CASAJ.

Control box 12 houses switches 12A and 128 which are conventional pushbutton type switches. Switch 12A is pushed and momentarily closed foroperating microphone 10 while switch 12A is pushed and locked closed tooperate the microphone and pushed again and opened. It will beunderstood that switches 12A and 12B may be manually operated oroperated by foot, and in the latter case are operated similar to a motorvehicle headlight dimmer switch. Adapter 8 will be next described withreference to FIG. 2.

With reference then to the electrical schematic dia gram of FIG. 2,microphone 10 has a grounded conductor and a conductor 17 connected toan input terminal 18 of control box 12. Input terminal 18 is connectedthrough normally open switch 12A to an input terminal 20 of the controlbox and is connected to output terminal 20 through normally open switch12B connected in parallel :with switch 12A.

Output terminal 20 of control box 12 is connected to an input terminal22 of adapter 8 and which adapter hasanother. input terminal 24, anoutput terminal 26 and a terminal 28 having a grounded conductor 29connected thereto. Microphone 6 has a grounded conductor 30.and aconductor 32 connected to input terminal 24 of adapter 8 throughnormally open switch 6A.

Input terminals 22 and 24 of adapter 8 are connected to output terminal26. Output terminal 26 is connected to an input terminal 36 of radioapparatus 2 which may transmit signals to and receive signals fromremote station 4.

.ln communicating with remote station 4, microphone 6 is normally used.That is, the microphone is held in the hand and operated through switch6A to transmit through radio apparatus 2 to the remote station. Whentransmission is required without compromising vehicle control or duringa distress situation such as a hold-up, microphone 10 is selectivelyoperated through control box '12.

To these ends a specific implementation of the invention is shown inFIG. 3, wherein the device described is carried, for purposes ofillustration, in a vehicle 40. Radio apparatus 2 may be powered fromvehicle battery 41 and is mounted on or under the dash of vehicle 40 ina conventional manner. Adapter 8 is connected as shown in FIG. 2, as aremicrophone 6, switch 6A, microphone 10 and switches 12A and 12B.Microphone 6 hooks on the vehicle dash when said microphone is not inuse and switch box 12 is shown on the floor board 42 of the vehicle,whereby operation of switches 12A and 12B may be accomplished by footand without the use of the hands. For operation without the handsmicrophone 10 is mounted on the steering column 44 of vehicle 40.

With aforegoing description in mind it will now be seen that theheretofore noted objects of the invention are met.

Under hazardous driving conditions or when driving at high speed,communication between vehicle 40 and remote station 4 is accomplished byoperating microphone 10 through control box 12. Switch 12A isfootactuated for being momentarily closed, or for sustainedtransmission, switch 12B is foot-actuated for being locked closed. Thelocation of microphone 10 and control box 12 makes transmission possiblewithout the use of the hands as will now be understood, and vehiclecontrol is thus not compromised.

In the event of a distress situation such as a hold-up switches 12A or128 and microphone 10, arranged as shown in FIG. 3, may besurreptitiously operated. Thus, conversations between the perpetrator ofthe crime and the driver of vehicle 40, which may include instructions,threats and/or commands and the like, are transmitted through microphone10 to remote station 4 without attracting the attention of theperpetrator. These transmissions may be recorded at remote station 4 toassist perpetrator identification. They may also be used to pinpoint thesitus of the crime or otherwise provide a crime deterrent as will now beseen.

It is to be understood that the positions of microphone 10 and controlbox 12 in vehicle 40 as shown in FIG. 3 are for illustration purposesonly and these components may be positioned in other locations to servethe purposes intended. For example, control box 12 may be disposed onsteering column 44 so as to enable normal operation, but still withoutappreciably compromising vehicle control. Likewise microphone 10 may bedisposed in any convenient location which might render it hidden toenhance the crime deterrent features of the invention. It is thus withinthe contemplation of the invention to appropriately mount microphone 10on the dashboard of vehicle 10.

An important feature of the invention resides in the fact that it may beeasily installed with only insignificant modification to the vehiclebeing required. The crime deterrent features of the invention may befurther enhanced by arranging for transmission on predeterminedfrequencies, whereby distress communications may be intercepted bypolice agencies for early frustration of the crime.

It will now be understood by those skilled in the art that whenmicrophone 10 is used for communication enhancement of transmissioncharacteristics is often desirable and in some cases necessary. Forexample, for communication during a distress situation it may beadvantageous to impart a time control characteristic to switch 12A. Thatis to say, when the switch is actuated for being momentarily closed asheretofore described, transmission for a selected interval is achievedand after which interval the switch automatically opens to discontinuetransmission. Also signal amplification may be required whentransmission is accomplished through microphone 10, depending on thedisposition of the microphone as aforenoted. Further, under certainconditions of operation it may be desirable to suppress loud extranousnoise levels. Additionally, since radio apparatus 2 may have high or lowimpedance characteristic, means for matching the impedance of microphone10 to that of the radio apparatus may be necessary for effectivecommunication. The circuitry shown in FIG. 4 accomplishes these purposesas will next be described.

Thus, as shown in FIG. 4, the circuitry is connected at a point 50 tobattery 41 (FIG. 3) which applies for purposes of illustration, +12volts thereto. This voltage is applied across a filtering capacitor 52.A resistor 54 is serially connected to a zener diode 56, and whichelements 54 and 56 are connected in parallel with capacitor 52. Zenerdiode 56 regulates the applied voltage to a predetermined lesser levelwhile resistor 54 maintains a load across the zener diode when thecircuit is in the quiescent state. In this connection it is to be notedthat when microphone 6 is used for audio transmission, the circuit ofFIG. 4 is inoperative, although operation of microphone l0 overridesoperation of microphone 6 as will be hereinafter become evident.

When switch 12A is-momentan'ly closed as heretofore noted with referenceto FIGS. 1 and 2, a relay coil 58 is energized for a predeterminedinterval as will be further explained. The relay coil so energized isoperative for connecting circuit points 60 and 62 to turn on radioapparatus 2; for connecting circuit points 64 and 72 and 78 areconnected to connect a ballast resistor 80 across zener diode 56.

With relay coil 58 energized and microphone 10, which may be an ultrahigh impedance microphone, used for transmission, the signal from themicrophone is applied to an amplifier including a transistor 82,resistors 84, 86, 88, 90 and capacitors 92 and .94. The signal thereformis applied to a second amplifier including a transistor 96, resistors98, 99, 100 and capacitors 102, 104, 106, 108 and 110. The secondamplifier raises the level of the signal from microphone to that frommicrophone 6. A potentiometer 111 may be used by the vehicle operator tomanually adjust the signal level as may be desired, depending on theparticular use of the communication system. I

As heretofore noted, radio apparatus 2 may be of the high or lowimpedance type, both of said types being commercially available and inuse. The circuitry being described is effective for matching theimpedance of microphone 10 to the radio apparatus impedance by employinga stage including a transistor 112, resistors 116, 118 and 120 and acapacitor 122. Thus, if a high impedance input is required circuitpoints 66 and 115 are manually connected during installation of thesystem and if a low impedance input is required circuit points 66 and114 are manually connected to provide the appropriate impedance matchingcharacteristics. This feature of the invention provides versatility inapplying the device of the invention to vehicles with one or the othertypes of radio apparatus as will now be appreciated.

In order to suppress undesirable loud audio levels a stage employing atransistor 124, a diode 126, resistors 128, 130 and capacitors 132 and134 is employed. A portion of the output from transistor 82 is appliedto this stage which provides a signal which, when at some predeterminedhigh level, will cause a stage including a transistor 136, resistors138, 140, 142 and a capacitor 144 to shunt transistor 82 to effectivelysuppress the loud audio levels.

In order to provide a timing characteristic to transmission viamicrophone 10, an operator-operable switch 146 is provided. When switch146 is momentarily closed a timing circuit including a transistor 148,the input to which is manually adjusted by a potentiometer 150 dependingon the transmission interval desired, is activated through resistors 152and 154 and a capacitor 156. During the interval that transistor 148 isconductive, as determined by the adjustment of potentiometer 150, relaycoil 58 will remain energized to provide circuit point connections asheretofore described. When the transistor is non-conductive the relay isdeenergized and the connections are broken to discontinue transmission.A diode 158 is connected to protect this timing circuit from shortingout when switch 12a is actuated. Switch 146 may be suitably mounted invehicle 40 so as to be covertly operated when switch 12A is operated aswill now be understood.

Although only one embodiment of the invention has been illustrated anddescribed, various changes in the form and relative arrangements of theparts, which will now appear obvious to those skilled in the art, may bemae without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.Reference is therefore, to be had to the appended claims for adefinition of the limits of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A system for communicating between a vehicle and a remote station,comprising:

radio apparatus including at least a transmitter carried by the vehicle;

first and second microphones selectively operable by an operator of thevehicle for communicating with the remote station:

the first microphone arranged for being held by the operator when inuse;

the second microphone discretely disposed within the vehicle;

a first normally open switch connected to the first microphone and thetransmitter and supported by said microphone, and operator-operable forbeing closed to connect the first microphone to the transmitter;

a second normally open switch connected to the sec ond microphone andsupported within the vehicle, and operator-operable for being closed;and

circuit means connected to the second switch, the

second microphone and the transmitter, and including means effectiveupon the second switch being momentarily closed for connecting thesecond microphone to the transmitter, a third normally open switch, andtime control means connected to the third normally open switch and tothe connecting means and affecting said connecting means upon the thirdswitch being momentarily closed for maintaining the second microphoneconnected to the transmitter for a predetermined inter-- val. 2. Asystem as described by claim 1, wherein the circuit means furtherincludes:

means connected to the second switch, the first microphone and thetransmitter, and effective upon the second switch being closed fordisconnecting the first microphone from the transmitter. 3. A system asdescribed by claim 1, wherein the circuit means further includes:

means effective upon the second switch being closed for amplifying theoutput of the second microphone. 4. A system as described by claim 1,wherein the circuit means further includes:

means connected to the time control means and effective upon the secondand third switches being closed, and operator-operable for varying thepredetermined interval. 5. A system as described by claim 3, wherein thecircuit means further includes:

means connected to the amplifying means and effective upon the secondswitch being closed, and operator-operable for varying theamplification. 6. A system as describedby claim 1, wherein the circuitmeans further includes:

means effective upon the second switch being closed for matching theimpedance of the second microphone to that of the transmitter. 7. Asystem as described by claim 1, wherein the circuit means furtherincludes:

means effective upon the second switch being closed for suppressingoutputs from the second microphone above a predetermined level.

1. A system for communicating between a vehicle and a remote station,comprising: radio apparatus including at least a transmitter carried bythe vehicle; first and second microphones selectively operable by anoperator of the vehicle for communicating with the remote station: thefirst microphone arranged for being held by the operator when in use;the second microphone discretely disposed within the vehicle; a firstnormally open switch connected to the first microphone and thetransmitter and supported by said microphone, and operator-operable forbeing closed to connect the first microphone to the transmitter; asecond normally open switch connected to the second microphone andsupported within the vehicle, and operator-operable for being closed;and circuit means connected to the second switch, the second microphoneand the transmitter, and including means effective upon the secondswitch being momentarily closed for connecting the second microphone tothe transmitter, a third normally open switch, and time control meansconnected to the third normally open switch and to the connecting meansand affecting said connecting means upon the third switch beingmomentarily closed for maintaining the second microphone connected tothe transmitter for a predetermined interval.
 2. A system as describedby claim 1, wherein the circuit means further includes: means connectedto the second switch, the first microphone and the transmitter, andeffective upon the second switch being closed for disconnecting thefirst microphone from the transmitter.
 3. A system as described by claim1, wherein the circuit means further includes: means effective upon thesecond switch being closed for amplifying the output of the seconDmicrophone.
 4. A system as described by claim 1, wherein the circuitmeans further includes: means connected to the time control means andeffective upon the second and third switches being closed, andoperator-operable for varying the predetermined interval.
 5. A system asdescribed by claim 3, wherein the circuit means further includes: meansconnected to the amplifying means and effective upon the second switchbeing closed, and operator-operable for varying the amplification.
 6. Asystem as described by claim 1, wherein the circuit means furtherincludes: means effective upon the second switch being closed formatching the impedance of the second microphone to that of thetransmitter.
 7. A system as described by claim 1, wherein the circuitmeans further includes: means effective upon the second switch beingclosed for suppressing outputs from the second microphone above apredetermined level.